Uriah Heep din nou in Romania

În urmă cu câteva zile, faimoasa trupă rock Uriah Heep anunţa cu tristeţe despărţirea de bunul lor prieten Trevor Bolder, celebrul basist care s-a stins din viaţă la vârsta de 62 de ani după o luptă grea cu cancerul. Agravarea stării de sănătate de la finalul anului trecut l-a determinat pe artist să se retragă, predând cu încredere ştafeta actualului basist, Dave Rimmer. Această pierdere uriaşă nu i-a împiedicat însă pe membrii grupului Uriah Heep să îşi desfăşoare programul turneului deja stabilit. Artiştii vor susţine în continuare seria concertelor programate pentru acest an.
În urmă cu câteva zile, faimoasa trupă rock Uriah Heep anunţa cu tristeţe despărţirea de bunul lor prieten Trevor Bolder,

Începând cu 1 iunie, ei vor concerta pe marile scene din Germania, Austria şi Ungaria, urmând ca pe 11 iunie legendara trupă să se reîntâlnească cu fanii din România în cadrul unui eveniment exploziv care se va desfăşura pe scena Arenelor Romane din Bucureşti începând cu orele 20:00. Cele două ore de concert din Bucureşti vor fi dedicate exclusiv basistului Trevor Bolder, un prieten foarte apropiat şi în acelaşi timp un coleg desăvârşit care le-a fost alături 37 de ani. Sursa

Storm Thorgerson

 "Este dragut dar este o idee simpla. Reflectarea luminii printr-o prisma este un lucru comun in natura, ca un curcubeu. Mi-ar placea sa-mi asum ideea, dar din pacate nu este a mea!"

Designer and film-maker Storm Thorgerson grew up in Cambridge and was an early friend of Syd Barrett, Roger Waters and David Gilmour, all from Pink Floyd, for whom he designed many album covers, including the iconic sleeve for The Dark Side Of The Moon. The graphic art group Hipgnosis (co-founded by Storm with Aubrey 'Po' Powell) became one of the most famed design and photographic teams in music, with covers for many other internationally successful artists, including Led Zeppelin, Genesis, Wishbone Ash, 10cc, Black Sabbath, Wings, Peter Gabriel, and Yes. After the team went their separate ways, Storm spent some time creating films and documentaries, but always maintained his design work, most recently as founder of StormStudios, which has created memorable images for Muse, Biffy Clyro, and The Steve Miller Band, as well as the graphics for the recent Why Pink Floyd? campaign.

Storm Elvin Thorgerson was born in Potters Bar, Middlesex (now in Hertfordshire) on February 28th 1944. Of Norwegian heritage, he was schooled at Summerhill free school and then Brunswick Primary School in Cambridge. His secondary education was at local grammar school, the Cambridgeshire High School for Boys, alongside Syd Barrett and Roger Waters, who went on to form Pink Floyd.
He studied for a degree at Leicester University from 1963 to 1966, initially in Psychology, but he switched courses, gaining more satisfaction from attaining a BA Honours degree in English and Philosophy. However, his primary interest had always been film, so he progressed to a Masters' Degree course in Film and TV at London's Royal College of Art (1966-69). He had a variety of jobs, including being a temporary porter for British Rail, before founding Hipgnosis with fellow college student 'Po' Powell.
Po, originally from Sussex, had attended school in Ely, Cambridgeshire, and had met Storm in Cambridge, striking up a friendship that led to them sharing a flat in London. The Thorgerson/Powell design company was named Hipgnosis (by juxtaposing 'hip' with the Greek 'gnosis' – to know) and their first commission was for a series of book jackets. In 1968, wanting to break into the world of album covers, which had become much more flamboyant and art-oriented since the psychedelic explosion of 1967, Storm asked his friend David Gilmour, who had recently replaced Syd Barrett as guitarist/singer in Pink Floyd, to help persuade the other members of Pink Floyd that they should use him to do the artwork for their latest album.
The resulting cover for A Saucerful of Secrets still stands as one of the best examples of British psychedelic cover art. As Q magazine stated, the designers attempted to mirror three "altered states of consciousness" – religion, drugs, and Pink Floyd music. A studio was acquired at 6 Denmark Street in Soho and until 1982 Hipgnosis thrived as one of the best known photography and design companies.
The Pink Floyd connection continued with the covers for the band's subsequent albums, including More, the double album Ummagumma (shot at the house of Storm's then-girlfriend Libby January) and Atom Heart Mother, but Hipgnosis worked with many other artists, including The Pretty Things, Syd Barrett, The Nice, T. Rex, Marvin, Welch & Farrar, The Electric Light Orchestra, Wishbone Ash, the Climax Blues Band, and Renaissance, before the huge success of 1973's The Dark Side Of The Moon and its stark graphic sleeve brought their work to a global audience.
Larger budgets allowed Storm and Po more free rein, and suitably cinematic sleeves were created for clients such as Led Zeppelin (Houses Of The Holy), Genesis (The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway) and 10cc (Deceptive Bends), among many others.
By Storm's own admission, he was never a draughtsman, preferring to work with ideas and concepts, and many of his designs are notable for their surreal elements, placing objects out of their traditional contexts, especially with vast spaces around them, to give them an awkward appearance while highlighting their beauty. Storm has said: "I like photography because it is a reality medium, unlike drawing which is unreal. I like to mess with reality...to bend reality. Some of my works beg the question of is it real or not?"

Acknowledging the influence of Belgian surrealist Rene Magritte, Storm said: "I probably first came across Magritte via my mother, and I think my mother rather indirectly encouraged my interest in art, particularly in painting. Magritte was probably an early interest, I think because he dealt not with technique so much as with ideas, and some of them are quite funny. I like to look, because it makes me smile.
"I think I took away from Magritte a sort of love of oddity, or oddness, or rather, juxtaposition or contrariness. He used to play with the reality, you know, so in a sense I have to set it up as a real thing which has been slightly twisted – that's the contrariness, the oddness. We often stage these things for real and don't do them in a computer because the reality has its own attributes. What you see is what you get."
Another element that set Hipgnosis apart from their contemporaries was their use of English puns to create a pictorial counterpart to an album's title: Wishbone Ash's Live Dates recreated the imagery of an ornately illustrated box of dates; There's The Rub by Wishbone Ash depicted a cricketer, showing evidence of him having shined the cricket ball against his trousers to add spin when bowling; 10cc's Sheet Music showed the four band members holding a giant bedsheet that engulfed the lens; UFO's Force It utilised bathroom imagery, as a pun on the US use of 'faucet' rather than the English 'tap' – and so on.
Hipgnosis weren't afraid to use multiple visual techniques to effect their designs; over the years their sleeves used hyperreal photography, pencil illustration, airbrushing, photo montage, Polaroid manipulation and colour photocopying, while their design for The Dark Side Of The Moon was entirely graphic (with Hipgnosis associate George Hardie). In spite of that, their most celebrated images are still probably the ones using Storm's favoured method of grotesquely oversizing everyday objects like balls of wool, lightbulbs and sculpted heads and then placing them in an otherworldly landscape.
By the early 1980s the studio had diversified into advertising, designing and shooting campaigns for Peugeot, Kronenbourg 1664, Levi Jeans, Volvo, Gillette, Stella Artois, Rank Xerox, and The Beatles. Moving from photo design into moving pictures, Powell, Thorgerson and Peter Christopherson started Green Back Films in 1982, shooting many music videos including Big Log for Robert Plant, Wherever I Lay My Hat for Paul Young, Owner of A Lonely Heart for Yes, and Blue Light for David Gilmour. The trio wrote, produced and directed three feature films: Incident at Channel Q starring Al Corley (Sony), Train of Thought with Yumi Matsutoya (Toshiba EMI), and Now Voyager starring Sir Michael Hordern and Barry Gibb (Universal). Green Back Films closed in 1984, with Storm and Po each striking out on their own, Storm forming successively STd (Storm Thorgerson Design), then StormStudios.
StormStudios' loose group of freelancers currently includes Peter Curzon, Rupert Truman, Daniel Abbott, Lee Baker, Jerry Sweet, Laura Truman, Silvia Ruga, and Charlotte Barnes, some combinations of whom have been working with several newer artists, including Muse. In the foreword to 'Taken By Storm' (2007), a book dedicated to Storm's album art, Muse's Matt Bellamy said: "When we first met it occurred to me that he is one of the most bloody minded and stubborn grumpy sods I have ever met! He speaks his mind and has a stoic disposition, which is bold and a rarity in this fickle industry, but one which garners respect. The pursuit of his own vision, which on occasion bypasses all external input can be difficult for some to handle. However his reasoning, delivered with a mordant, even waspish, wit and a dogged attitude, ensures you come round to his point of view."
Storm explained his approach: "I'm very interested in intentional ambiguity. You know what it is, but not why it is. You might know what it is, but not how it is. There was one particular cover that was very consciously about Magritte. It was a sort of homage. It was Wish You Were Here for Pink Floyd, and we did four pictures, including a man on fire, a man diving into a lake, a veil floating in the air in Norfolk, and the man in a desert who had no features. The one that was on the back cover, which was the man in the desert, is very obviously, and was supposed to be, a Magritte thing. So I think there is a certain Magritte feeling to the cover. It does confound you a bit, because you look at it and think, well, is this real?
"I mean, I am predominantly an image-maker, so I try and come up with images that will suit the music. In the contemporary world, rather than in a gallery, I'm trying to persuade the viewer to look again, to give the album cover a second look, as they will give them in a gallery, so partly you look at it and say, 'Well, that's pretty silly, or strange, or weird – what does it mean?'"
In 2010, the UK's Royal Mail paid tribute to several classic album covers by issuing them on First Class postage stamps. Included in the release was Storm's striking image for Pink Floyd's 1994 album The Division Bell, which featured two massive 9-feet high heads (drawn by Keith Breedon and sculpted by John Robertson) sited in a corn field in front of a distant Ely Cathedral.
Several books have been devoted to surveying Storm Thorgerson's work, spanning the more than four decades that he had been creatively active. He famously never stopped working, and at the time of his death was pursuing various projects, including a documentary on the life and work of Pink Floyd co-founder Syd Barrett.
Speaking of his work in 2012, Storm said: "I think it's always a very difficult thing for commercial artists and designers to pursue, against either circumstance or financial restrictions, that which you believe. So I've been very lucky, really. I was working for the [Pink] Floyd, who couldn't think of anything better to do than to hire me, and fortunately what we did worked, quite early on.
"I always thought, and I still think, that Ummagumma is a great design. I probably shouldn't, as an artist, like my own work (heavens, us artists are supposed to suffer dreadfully), but I quite like it.
"Film school definitely had an effect on my love of landscape. The humour, which I hope is there occasionally, like the cow [on the sleeve of Atom Heart Mother] I think just comes from the background I emerged from."
He died on 18th April, 2013. His family said: "Yes, Storm has died. He passed away, on Thursday 18th April in the afternoon. His ending was peaceful and he was surrounded by family and friends. He had been ill for some time with cancer though he had made a remarkable recovery from his stroke in 2003. He was in his 70th year."
David Gilmour said: "We first met in our early teens. We would gather at Sheep's Green, a spot by the river in Cambridge and Storm would always be there holding forth, making the most noise, bursting with ideas and enthusiasm. Nothing has ever really changed."He has been a constant force in my life, both at work and in private, a shoulder to cry on and a great friend. "The artworks that he created for Pink Floyd from 1968 to the present day have been an inseparable part of our work. "I will miss him."
Nick Mason said: "Scourge of management, record companies and album sleeve printers; champion of bands, music, great ideas and high, sometimes infuriatingly high, standards.
"Defender of art over commerce at all times, and tireless worker right up to the end. Two days before he passed away, and by then completely exhausted he was still demanding approval for art work and haranguing his loyal assistants. "Dear friend to all of us, our children, our wives (and the exes), endlessly intellectual and questioning. Breathtakingly late for appointments and meetings, but once there, invaluable for his ideas, humour, and friendship. "Irreplaceable and unforgettable, but leaving a wonderful legacy of ideas, film, writings and art work, Hipgnosis and Storm have contributed to so many musicians to engineer sums immeasurably greater than their parts."
He is survived by his mother Vanji, his son Bill, his wife Barbie Antonis and her two children Adam and Georgia. Sursa: http://davidgilmour.com/

38 de ani de la ucidera miseleasca a lui Cornel Chiriac

Acum 38 de ani Cornel Chiriac a plecat brusc la cer, de unde ne incanta si astazi cu vocea sa, cu personalitatea sa si cu tot ceea ce a facut in scurta sa traiectorie pe acest pamant pentru ascultatorii de muzica buna din Romania... Te dorim astazi, aici, maestre... 





  

Cornel Chiriac, un vesnic "Sweet child in time"

Daca ani de-a randul, Cornel Chiriac a transmis ascultatorilor sai de dupa Cortina de Fier sute si sute de piese muzicale de exceptie, haideti ca astazi, cand se implinesc 38 de ani de la uciderea sa miseleasca de catre mana lunga a Securitatii, sa-i transmitem acolo, in Cer, un cadou muzical... O piesa pe care el insusi a transmis-o de nenumarate ori la emisiunea Metronom de la Radio Europa Libera, o piesa pe care sa o asculte si el de acolo de unde se afla si care stim ca ii va placea cu siguranta...

Din partea lui "Piparus Petru", a "Cioarei din varful parului", (am luat doar doua nume la intamplare), si a tuturor celor care i-au ascultat emisiunile si l-au apreciat, pentru domnul Cornel Chiriac, care se afla de data asta el insusi dupa "Cortina de Fier", (o alta cortina de fier), "Sweet child in time" cu Deep Purple... Cu mentiunea ca pentru toti cei care te-au ascultat, Cornele, ai ramas acelasi "dulce copil in timp"...

Doamnelor si domnilor, in memoria lui Cornel Chiriac, sa ne ridicam in picioare si sa ascultam impreuna aceasta excelenta piesa...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfAWReBmxEs

Dark side of the moon

Ma intreb daca "Dark side of the moon" este sau nu cel mai bun album al tuturor timpurilor. Nu stiu de ce mi-a venit asa, brusc, din strafunduri, gandul la Pink Floyd. 

Cand eram pe la vreo 15 ani, ascultam Europa libera in fiecare duminica, anume emisiunea lui Radu Theodoru "Metronom - by request". Aveam muzica mea, imi placeau anumite trupe, anumite piese etc.
Intr-o zi, a trecut pe la noi un unchi din Bucuresti, al carui nume nu l-am stiut niciodata, dar caruia ii spuneam Nimbus. Habar nu am de la ce i se tragea, dar asta era porecla lui. 

A venit omul, mi-a adus ciocolata de rigoare, apoi ne-am pus la masa in sufragerie. Am stat ce am stat, mama si Nimbus au tot vorbit lucruri care nu ma interesau deloc, apoi s-a apropiat foarte mult ora 15 si deja pentru mine nu mai conta nimic decat Metronomul care statea sa inceapa. M-am dus langa geam cu radio-ul si m-am apucat sa butonez. Europa libera era bruiata puternic, dar pentru ca ai lui Ceausescu nu aveau bani suficienti ca sa faca un bruiaj de calitate, erau minute bune in care puteai auzi foarte bine ceea ce se transmitea. A inceput emisiunea si, ce sa vezi - prima piesa era exact aia care-mi placea mie cel mai mult - "Wish you were here" cu Pink Floyd. Ascult eu ce ascult si, nu stiu cum naiba incepe sa mi se para ca Nimbus este si el prins de muzica. Ma gandeam ca iata, in sfarsit, am un companion, un adult care pricepe ce si cum. Numai ca la un moment dat, o aud pe mama: "poftim, uite-te si tu ce asculta ei in ziua de azi!" La care Nimbus s-a apucat sa tina o teorie care numai favorabila nu imi era - ceva despre degradare etc, mai pe scurt teoria pe care o fac eu azi cand o prind pe Maria ca asculta Justin Bieber si alti maimutoi. Buuuuun. 

Asta a costat-o pe mama mult. Niciodata, dar absolut niciodata nu am putut sa uit faza aia. Anii au trecut, cum stiu ei sa treca. Am terminat liceul, apoi facultatea. Am fost profesor la Baicoi, apoi m-am transferat la Sinaia. A venit Revolutia si am terminat-o cu invatamantul. Eram om trecut de 35 de ani cand, intr-o seara, mi s-a facut dor de "Dark side of the moon". Aveam combina, aveam CD-uri, asa ca mi-am pus albumul si am stat langa soba, ascultand. Fumam si mai sorbeam dintr-o cana cu vin, ascultam si ma simteam liber si fericit. Mama era si ea pe-acolo, statea in picioare, parc-o vad, cu spatele lipit de soba. 

Si, cum stateam noi asa, fiecare cu ale lui in gand, numai ce-o aud: 

- Mai baiete, frumoasa muzica ai pus. Ce e asta? Cine interpreteaza?

- Pink Floyd, i-am zis si dintr-odata mi-au revenit in minte momentele alea din copilarie, cand muzica pe care o ascultam eu era demna de tot dispretul, dar acum devenise frumoasa. 

Stau si ma framant: va veni oare vremea in care Maria o sa asculte Justin Bieber si eu o s-o intreb: "dar cine canta muzica asta minunata?" (Sursa)

Taximetristul Rock

Nițu Constantin are 56 de ani, e taximetrist din ’87 și e probabil singurul taximetrist din București care abia așteaptă concertul din vară al lui Roger Waters, basistul de la Pink Floyd. E fan de la 15 ani, de când un amic din blocul de la Piața Sudului, unde a copilărit, i-a dat să asculte pentru prima dată Pink Floyd. „A fost ca o chemare”, spune Nițu. „Mi-am dat seama că muzica asta e făcută exact pentru structura mea psihică, pentru sufletul meu.”

A început apoi să caute și să asculte tot mai mult rock, în special rock progresiv: Gentle Giant, Jethro Tull, Genesis, Emerson, Lake and Palmer sau Yes. „Ce înseamnă Pink Floyd pentru mine? Din zece melodii îmi plac cel puțin nouă. După aia vine Genesis, din zece îmi plac șapte. Jethro Tull, din zece îmi plac cinci, că ăia sunt mai greu de descifrat. Cam ăsta e sistemul meu de valori.”
A ascultat multă muzică de-a lungul timpului și a tot încercat să dea o șansă și altor trupe (Def Leppard, Whitesnake), dar și-a dat seama că, deși cântă bine, nu-s pentru el. „Queen, de exemplu, e ca și cum aș mânca o ciorbă. E bună, dar nu mă satur. Nu mă atinge.”

În tinerețe a petrecut ceva timp pe lângă o trupă de rock românească, Ficus. Îi știa pe Adrian Ilie, basistul, pe bateristul Vali Neamțu („un tobar bun de tot, i se zicea Gălăgie”) și umbla cu ei pe la concerte, îi ajuta cu echipamentele și, de câteva ori, puține, a cântat alături de ei la chitară.
Lui Nițu, care e un bărbat solid, cu voce grunjoasă, păr cărunt și ochelari, nu i se întâmplă des să ia pasageri care să-i aprecieze gusturile. „Poate cinci-șapte dintr-o sută, să înțeleagă”, spune el. Are mereu în mașină CD-ul cu peste 70 de melodii, selecție proprie, unde pe lângă preferații săi a pus și melodii de la Jean-Luc Ponty („mă termină când îl aud”), Satriani, Etta James sau Kansas cu Dust in The Wind („mai mult pentru clienți”). Spune că a avut și clienți care au insistat să i-l cumpere. Unul, după ce a refuzat să i-l vândă, i-a pus 100 de lei pe bord și i-a zis „Acum mi-l dai?”. I l-a dat.
Odată, a luat în taxi un tânăr cu care a ajuns să discute despre muzică. Au ajuns și la Pink Floyd, iar tânărul i-a spus că sunt slabi. „Să-l bat, să-l dau jos?”, râde Nițu, amintindu-şi. „Ești chiar nesimțit? Cum poți să vorbești așa de o trupă cu sute de milioane de discuri vândute?”. Nițu, care și la nuntă a pus Pink Floyd („puțin, cât să nu-mi dea invitații cu sarmalele-n cap”) are acasă toată discografia, toate videoclipurile și toate concertele trupei.

Are calculator de câţiva ani, iar muzica și-o caută pe internet. Înainte, îi mai făcea CD-uri un student din Regie. Sunt melodii pe care, dacă nu le găsește, le ia de pe YouTube și le transformă în mp3, doar ca să le poată asculta în mașină. ...

N-are mulți oameni în jurul lui cu care să discute despre muzică. Are chitară, dar a uitat să cânte pentru că n-a mai folosit-o de multă vreme. „Uitarea e legea memoriei”, spune el. Chitara e acum în magazie, unde i-a dus-o soția, pentru că ocupa prea mult spațiu. Locuiesc într-o casă cu trei camere, dar două dintre ele ar trebui refăcute de la zero. Soția nu-i împărtășește pasiunea pentru muzica rock, dar el spune că nu e nevoie.
„Poți să ai comunicare pe alte planuri, nu neapărat pe ăsta.” Deși, tot el spune, zâmbind, că o simte că-i place când mai ascultă acasă. „Pentru mine, muzica asta e totul. Asta e muzica care mă satură. Uit și de foame ,și de orice pe lumea asta când o ascult. E singura modalitate de a mă descătușa de viața de zi cu zi.”(Sursa)

Mystery biography

Since 1986, Canadian band MYSTERY has forged themselves worldwide recognition. It all started with the release of their first CD in 1992, but it would take another four years before the Prog-AOR world discover what MYSTERY is all about. With the release of their first full length CD THEATRE OF THE MIND in 1996, MYSTERY took the Prog-AOR world by surprise. The album being divided in two parts, The Dream and the Reality, delivers great music, strong harmonies and melodies. Critics from all around the world were praising this album.

With the release of DESTINY? in 1998, MYSTERY has placed themselves as one of the best new artist in the Prog-AOR world. The critics were unanimous; MYSTERY had created something of their own and was here to stay. From the title track Destiny? To the 14 minute epic Shadow of the Lake, MYSTERY created the perfect balance between Progressive Rock and AOR, Between Acoustic and Electric, between Analogue and Digital. The new Millennium arrived with the release of a compilation CD - AT THE DAWN OF A NEW MILLENNIUM- Featuring the best songs released in the 90’s all re-mastered. At the Dawn of a New Millennium is a turning point for MYSTERY, like the end of a chapter, and the beginning of a new era. Nine years after the release of the world acclaimed album DESTINY? Mystery is finally back with a new album called Beneath the Veil of Winter s Face. The Album is the first full length album featuring new singer Benoit David. 

Benoit had joined MYSTERY not too long after Gary Savoie left the band and had participated in the recording of Hey You! Performed by Mystery on the Pink Floyd tribute album Signs of Time, released in Germany on the Eclipsed Magazine Label and the song Visions of Paradise, also performed by Mystery on the Moody Blues tribute album Higher and Higher released on the Italian label Mellow Records. Beneath the Veil of Winter’s Face was recorded and mixed by Michel St-Pere at Studio illusion III in Mirabel Quebec, mastered by Richard Addison at trillium Sound Studios and featuring the beautiful pictures of Julien Roumagnac and graphic designs of Xinema’s drummer, Jonas Eckman. The Band now consisted of Benoit David on vocals, Steve Gagné on drums, Patrick Bourque ( Now living in Nashville and a full time member of the Country band Emerson Drive) on bass and Michel St-Pere on Guitars, Bass and Keyboards. The CD also features Spaced Out’s Antoine Fafard as well as Benoit Pepin on Bass. The Album was voted Album of the Year on the prestigious Dr.Music website and was in the top 10 best prog album in many magazines and radio shows. 

While Mystery is preparing the release of the 10th anniversary Edition of the album Destiny and start recording the new album due for the summer of 2009. Singer Benoit David joined legendary prog band YES for the In the Present Tour 2008-2009. MYSTERY also prepares to hit the road in 2009 with an appearance at the Montreal Progressive Rock Festival FMPM2009 with SAGA. The 2009 Line-up is now a six-piece, with Michel St-Père on guitars, Benoît David on vocals, Steve Gagné on drums, the return of Benoît Dupuis on keyboards, and two new members, Dean Baldwyn on guitar and François Fournier on bass. On the first of May 2010 the new album One Among the Living was released with a memorable performance atThe Majestic Theater in Gettysburg, PA. USA on the ROSfest opening night.

In 1991, Mystery records 25 original songs. In addition, Michel St-Père decides to produce Mystery's first CD with additional help from Ray Savoie's brother Gary on lead vocals, and Richard Addison on bass guitar. It will take a few months to produce but finally their first independently released 5 song CD is released in 1992.

Mystery generates interests from many record labels. Then, due to the unfortunate and untimely illness of Mystery's drummer, Stéphane Perreault, Mystery is forced to take a break and each member uses this time to work on different projects. Michel St-Père and Gary Savoie take the whole summer of 1993 to record another 20 original songs at Studio Illusion and they get ready for the next CD.

Autumn 1993, Mystery gets back together as they welcome back their courageous friend, Stéphane Perreault. His illness leaves him without the use of his legs. However, Stéphane's strong determination, will and his passion for his craft give him a new and unique approach in drumming. He becomes one of the first drummers to play from a wheelchair without the help of any preprogrammed sequences.

Summer 1994, Mystery plays the whole summer in venues all over the province, bringing their music to their numerous and growing Fans. Winter 1994; Mystery starts recording Theatre of the Mind, their first full lenght CD at Studio Illusion. While recording, Mystery's lineup introduces Patrick Bourque on bass guitar and Michel Painchaud on saxophone and acoustic guitar.

1995, Michel St-Pere forms UNICORN RECORDS as they are finalizing the mix for their Theatre of the Mind. Originally created to promote the music of Mystery, no one suspected that the label would become a major force in the progressive rock community a few years later. Benoît Dupuis and Michel Painchaud quit Mystery as the band is testing their Quadraphonic live sound system while preparing for the Theatre of the Mind promotional tour in various small venues in the province.

1996, Unicorn Records releases Theatre of the Mind. MYSTERY is by now a four-piece band including, Gary Savoie on vocals, Michel St-Père on electric, acoustic guitar and keyboards, Patrick Bourque on bass and Stéphane Perreault on drums and synthesizers, The band is tighter and stronger than ever and they are ready to bring their music to the whole world. Theatre of the Mind was the turning point in MYSTERY's career and for the first time the music of MYSTERY was heard outside of Canada. Then came a first review from a Canadian magazine and then more were coming from all around the world. Progressive rock radio programs would start playing songs from Theatre of the Mind and some Record labels would start selling Mystery’s CDs in countries like: France, Norway, USA and Canada.

1997, MYSTERY begins work on the third album but during the recording sessions, Stéphane Perreault left, after 7 years with MYSTERY, to concentrate on his graphic career. As the recording sessions were already started, they had to find someone who could take the job of not only a great drummer but also a great friend. With the help of Gilles Peltier, who worked on the mixing session of Theatre of the Mind, introduced Steve Gagné to the band. Steve came to Gilles’ studio and recorded one song as a try out and he fitted right away. Once again, providence was on our side, and the recordings of DESTINY? could continue.

Destiny? Is released in May 1998, an album with a more progressive edge to the music and the CD was also simultaneously license to one of the biggest Progressive rock label in Europe, MUSEA. The CD receives very good reviews from all around the world and proves to be MYSTERY's best selling album so far. At the same time a new edition of Theatre of the Mind was released with a new cover art designed this time by MYSTERY's ex-drummer Stéphane Perreault.

The name of Mystery is in every progressive rock magazines in the world. While the critic were acclaiming the new album and the band was at their best in live performances, it was clear that not all the members were happy with the direction MYSTERY was taking and by 1999, singer Gary Savoie and MYSTERY had to go their separate ways.

The new album that was planned for 1999 had not been started yet and MYSTERY had to find another singer to replace 7 years part of the band Gary Savoie. This new singer would have a big shoe to fill as reviews were often crediting Gary Savoie to be one of the best progressive rock Singer in the world. Michel St-Pere knew just who could do the job, Benoit David who Michel had met 2 years prior to Gary's departure after a YES tribute concert. Benoit’s performance was amazing and Michel knew at that time that if ever they would need a new singer, that they would ask this guy first. Steve Gagné knew someone who knew Benoît and after a few phone calls Benoît arrived at Illusion Studio to do an audition for the next MYSTERY CD. The song was Beneath the Veil of Winter’s Face, a song left over from the destiny? sessions. Benoit did a great job and joined the band right away. This audition tape will later be mixed and released on the DisDURPance Vol 3 compilation CD in Germany.

Meanwhile all of this had created a delay and the new CD was already a year late and no work was done. A Compilation CD with songs from the first three CDs called AT THE DAWN OF A NEW MILLENNIUM was released on UNICORN RECORDS. The label created by Michel St-Pere was now talking to other artists for the release of their music. This Compilation CDs was to mark the ending for the first chapter in MYSTERY's career and announcing a new beginning as well as a tribute to the voice of Gary Savoie and the beautiful contributions of many musicians who helped to make MYSTERY's music what it is today.

In 2000, Unicorn Records released the music of Spaced Out and Hamadryad. The label would take more and more time in Michel’s life for he would soon develop a real passion for his work at the label. This would however have a direct effect on the Mystery project and the recording session for the new album would be delayed.

MYSTERY would fill that gap by contributing on the Pink Floyd tribute album Signs of Life with a version of Hey you! released on the German label Angular and later on a version of Visions of Paradise was produced for the Moody Blues tribute CD Higher and Higher released on the Italian label Mellow Records.

In 2007, Unicorn Records now Unicorn Digital Inc. finally releases the long awaited new Mystery album entitled Beneath the Veil of Winter’s Face. The album was recorded and mixed by Michel St-Pere at Studio illusion III in Mirabel Quebec, mastered by Richard Addison at trillium Sound Studios and featuring the beautiful pictures of Julien Roumagnac and graphic designs of Xinema’s drummer, Jonas Eckman. The Bands now consist of Benoit David on vocals, Steve Gagné on drums, Patrick Bourque ( Now living in Nashville and a full time member of the Country band Emerson Drive) on bass and Michel St-Pere on Guitars, Bass and Keyboards. The CD also features Spaced Out’s Antoine Fafard as well as Benoit Pepin on Bass. Beneath the Veil of Winter’s Face was released on May the 15th 2007. (Sursa)

JANE - Ultimii romantici ai rockului

Ei bine, îmi face plăcere să vă prezint un grup despre a cărui existenţă puţini ştiu - JANE. În anii ’70, acest grup german din Hanovra era la mare preţ în ţara sa natală, ba chiar dobîndise statutul de cult band. Perioada de aur a grupului a fost între 1972 şi 1980, albumele sale vînzîndu-se în milioane de exemplare. Jane s-a format în toamna lui 1970, după ce Klaus Hess (bass), Peter Panka (voce, baterie) şi Werner Nadolny (clape) s-au despărţit de trupa profesionistă JUSTICE OF PEACE. Albumul de debut a apărut în 1971 sub numele Togheter, iar reacţiile pozitive au venit nu numai din Germania, ci şi din Austria şi Elveţia. Albumul scos în 1976, Fire, Water, Earth & Air, a constituit punctul culminant al grupului, iar discul înregistrat în concert Live At Home a însemnat cireaşa de pe tort. Începutul anilor ’80 a marcat o schimbare radicală a muzicii la nivel european, iar casa de discuri a trupei a decis să rezilieze contractul, nu înainte de a mai scoate un disc, Germania (1982). Muzicienii au luat-o pe cont propriu şi abia în noul mileniu JANE a revenit în atenţie. A revenit cu albumul Genuine, care a adus din nou în faţă acele sonorităţi care l-au consacrat. Pentru prima oară în România veţi citi un interviu cu unul dintre cei care au pus bazele grupului, Werner Nadolny.

Werner, cum descrii cei peste treizeci de ani de activitate a grupului JANE? Ce merită scos în evidenţă?
„A fost o mare experienţă, dar e păcat că s-au schimbat vremurile. Muzica noastră din anii ’70 nu mai e compatibilă acum cu noua generaţie.”

Cum s-a ajuns la formarea JANE?
„Eu am muzica în sînge. Simţeam că trebuie să o transmit cuiva şi aşa a apărut Jane. Nu m-am apucat să cînt pentru bani, ci doar din plăcere. Am pus pe note ceea ce simţeam.”

Ce-mi poţi spune despre direcţia muzicală?
„E legată tot de sufletul meu, de ceea ce simţeam. Nu m-am cramponat de stilul unui grup sau altul sau să fiu la modă. Muzica JANE reprezintă exact feeling-ul meu, pe care am vrut să-l împart cu oamenii. Aşa cum pictorii transpun ceea ce văd pe pînză, aşa cum poeţii îşi pun gîndurile şi sentimentele în poezii, aşa am făcut şi eu prin Jane.”

Cum se prezenta scena rock în Germania atunci cînd v-aţi apucat de treabă?
„Era foarte bine. Nu era ca acum, dar exista public pentru rock. Jane a fost primul grup german rock de mare succes, pentru că am ajuns la sufletele oamenilor.”

Care a fost perioada voastră prolifică şi care crezi că e cel mai reuşit album din anii ’70?
„Clar, între 1970 şi 1980. Acel deceniu se potrivea cu muzica noastră. Sau mai exact muzica noastră era pe sufletul oamenilor din acea perioadă. Astăzi publicul o admiră, mai puţin tinerii, care o consideră prea ”bătrînă”. De exemplu, în Germania muzica americană prinde după vreo 5-6 ani. Se poate ca muzica noastră să nu fie înţeleasă acum, dar peste cîţiva ani să prindă din nou.”

Nu mi-ai precizat punctul de referinţă din discografia JANE.
„Memorează ce spun: albumul de debut, Togheter, cel care ne-a consacrat. Apoi discul cu numărul cinci, Fire, Water, Earth & Air, singurul album conceptual JANE. Ar mai fi Live At Home, pentru care am primit discul de aur, dar şi Like 980, apărut în 1989. Este foarte important pentru că pe el sînt incluse toate momentele de referinţă din istoria grupului. Dacă ai aceste patru discuri, atunci ai toată esenţa muzicii Jane.”

Faptul că rockul o luase în alte direcţii la începutul anilor ’80 a însemnat destrămarea JANE. Dar şi azi rockul este departe de anii ’70 şi totuşi JANE s-a reformat.
„După albumul din ’89 am fost decis să pun punct definitiv activităţii cu JANE. La un moment dat însă am asistat la un spectacol de balet pe muzică rock, foarte apreciat în Germania. S-a declanşat din nou o nostalgie a muzicii anilor ’70 şi mulţi dintre fanii noştri ne-au scris şi ne-au cerut să reformăm JANE. Am spus OK. Între timp, unul dintre muzicienii grupului s-a mutat în Canada, iar altul are o cîrciumă în Dortmund, dar pentru înregistrări şi concerte sînt prezenţi la datorie. Doar eu şi Peter am rămas împreună, dar ceilalţi doi ne ajută cînd avem nevoie. Avem şi noroc cu actuala noastră casă de discuri, SPV, care ne ajută să ne reunim cînd avem nevoie. Nu avem prea mulţi bani, dar cînd trebuie să-l aducem pe colegul nostru din Canada, de exemplu, SPV trimite banii de avion şi toate problemele se rezolvă.”

În ultimii 15 ani muzica rock a suferit multe modificări. Au apărut noi curente, stiluri etc. V-a influenţat ceva în toată această perioadă?
„Deloc. De-a lungul anilor am fost şi noi influenţaţi de tot felul de găşti sau curente, dar nu în aşa măsură încît să ne schimbăm muzica sau să ne abatem de la stilul nostru melodic şi romantic.”

Pentru cine aţi înregistrat atunci noul disc?
„Pentru oameni. Din albumele noastre s-au vîndut pînă acum trei milioane de exemplare. Au existat trei milioane de oameni care au simţit la fel şi care au apreciat munca noastră. Cred că dintre aceşti oameni au mai rămas unii care să ne aprecieze şi-n acest moment.”

Hai să discutăm şi despre noul album, Genuine.
„Acest disc arată evoluţia noastră din ultimii 30 de ani. Toţi am îmbătrînit cu 30 de ani şi am arătat ce experienţă am căpătat între timp.”

Nu crezi că aţi picat într-un moment nu foarte potrivit, într-unul în care duritatea se află în prim-plan?
„Ba da, dar cred că unii se vor bucura să audă şi o muzică frumoasă, interesantă şi care se duce direct la inimă. Oamenii care vin la concertele noastre ies după show cu un aer de linişte, relaxaţi şi plini de viaţă şi iubire. Nu e frumos să trăieşti aşa? La un concert heavy metal oamenii primesc o energie puternică şi după concert au în cap numai să distrugă ceva.”

M-am tot gîndit în ce oală să bag JANE. Mulţi vă consideră de factură krautrock. Tu ce zici?
„Rock melodic. E ca-n grădina Edenului. Muzica noastră te plimbă prin grădini pline de flori mîngîiate de căldura soarelui. Asta e dorinţa noastră. Să injectăm oamenii cu un aer de bucurie şi cu multă căldură sufletească.”

Mai crezi că există astfel de oameni în zilele noastre?
„Sigur. Spre surprinderea noastră am observat că la concertele JANE vin mulţi tineri. Dacă ar veni numai oameni în vîrstă, nu m-aş bucura. Aş şti că nu mai există potenţial şi că muzica noastră nu poate străbate mai departe. Mă bucur că tinerii se interesează de perioada anilor ’70, de modul de viaţă de atunci şi că sînt deschişi la minte.”

Va mai activa JANE şi-n viitor?
„Sigur. Pot să-ţi spun că SPV pregăteşte lansarea unui Best Of Jane, după care noi vom merge într-un lung turneu european.”

Aveţi şi ceva înregistrări video?
„Nu, numai înregistrări private. Dar SPV are în plan editarea unui DVD. Cred că totul se va realiza după turneu.”


Componenţa Jane: Peter Panka (baterie, voce), Werner Nadolny (clape), Charly Maucher (bass, voce), Klaus Walz (chitară).

Titlurile pieselor de pe Genuine: Intro; Back Again; Love Me Or Leave Me; Do You Remember;
Be To See; Feelings; Dangerous Games; Everyone; Closer To The Night; I Got Fun; Fire Water Earth And Air; Another Way.

Un articol de Lenţi Chiriac
HMM: NR. 13(73) - noiembrie 2002

Sigur Rós - "Valtari"

Noul album Sigur Rós se numeste "Valtari" - de ascultat:

Sigur Rós' first few albums move almost glacially, building epic, eccentric sonic mysteries out of billowing guitars, portentous strings and Jónsi's high, otherworldly voice. Sung in a vaguely Scandinavian language of his own devising — he makes the sound "fyooooo" often enough that it might just mean "love" — the Icelandic band's songs are engrossingly strange, but always accessibly pretty.

In recent years, though, Jónsi has discovered his poppy side, with frequently glorious results. His magical solo debut, 2010's Go, is the work of a mad entertainer who's been newly transformed from a vulnerable, vaguely alien siren into a big-hearted pop ringmaster, complete with English-language directives to "surrender to summer." But even before that, Sigur Rós had begun poking around on the sunny side of life, most notably in cheerful songs like "Gobbledigook," from 2008's med sud i eyrum vid spilum endalaust. It's actually gotten to the point where a new Sigur Rós record doesn't automatically guarantee a collection of moodily gorgeous, slow-paced sound-washes.

That said? Valtari, Sigur Rós' first album in four years, is a collection of moodily gorgeous, slow-paced sound-washes. With the notable and remarkable exception of "Varúð," which builds to a crashing climax in the spirit of the band's recent classic "Festival," little here deviates from the absorbing minor-key gloom of albums like 2002's ( ). It's hard to dismiss Valtari (out May 29) as a retreat to Sigur Rós' past, in part because nothing Jónsi touches really sounds like anyone else; like ( ) or Ágætis Byrjun, Valtari could come from Iceland circa 2000 or the prettiest spot on Mars circa 2080.

Rather than getting bogged down in Valtari's place on the Sigur Rós continuum — basically, it fits right in the band's most comfortable sweet spot — it's better to bask in the album's almost overwhelming beauty. The eight-minute "Ekki múkk" would be a highlight of any Sigur Rós record of the last 10 years, while the hauntingly minimalistic "Varðeldur" and "Fjögur píanó" are quietly enveloping enough to almost literally hypnotize. If Valtari doesn't reinvent any facet of the group's sound, well, that's an indication of just how inventive, versatile and lovely that sound was to begin with. (Sursa)

Lansare site Speak Floyd

Dupa Pink Floyd Romania si Roger Waters Romania, care se vor doua site-uri romanesti ce promoveaza muzica formatiei Pink Foyd, am lansat astazi site-ul dedicat formatiei Speak Floyd, pe care doresc sa-i sustin atat cat pot in tot ceea ce fac pe plan muzical in proiectul foarte curajos pe care si l-au propus -un tribut al inegalabililor maestri progressive rock - Pink Floyd.

Pentru cei interesati:

http://speak-floyd.blogspot.ro/

It Bites biography

It Bites was formed in 1982, when Egremont schoolfriends Frank Dunnery, Dick Nolan and Bob Dalton, met John Beck who came from Whitehaven, on the local Cumbrian gig circuit. After playing gigs at working men’s clubs and nightclubs locally for a year or so (briefly featuring a saxophonist, Howard ‘H’ Smith at one point), the band decided to call it a day. Frank moved to London, Dick and Bob had a short spell in Birmingham, and John went to Manchester where he’d been living previously.

Six months later, Bob, Dick and John met by chance on a Wednesday night in an Egremont pub, and the idea of reforming was discussed. Luckily Frank was also in town, so it was decided to give it another go, but this time in London - destination Peckham, where Frank had been squatting for the previous six months. They settled into an empty council flat, with very little equipment – Frank had a 12 string acoustic guitar with only six strings, Dick had a Yamaha bass, John a Roland TR 606 drum box, a DX7, and a Yamaha mono synthesizer, plus a Hitachi stereo cassette recorder and a Panasonic cassette deck which the early demos were recorded on. After a year of rehearsing and recording in this ‘lo-fi’ way, the band pooled their Giros until they had enough to book 3 days at an 8-track studio in Camberwell. The resulting demos were hawked round all the record companies in London. After varying tactics, the band finally got in front of Martyn Mayhead at WEA Records. He liked what he heard (the demo of ‘All In Red’), and agreed to pay for rehearsal studio time so they could begin showcasing their songs as a live band, and help them get a recording contract. A few months later, they were polished enough to start convincing record companies that the band was an opportunity not to be missed, and they were signed up by Virgin Records. The demo of ‘All In Red’ became their first single in March 1986, followed in June by ‘Calling All The Heroes’ which got a huge amount of radio play, plus TV appearances on Top Of The Pops, Wogan, and The Old Grey Whistle Test amongst others. This saw the song racing up the UK Top 40 singles chart and reaching number six. The following single 'Whole New World' also hit the charts, but not at such a high position.

Their debut album, ‘Big Lad In The Windmill’ followed in July 1986, which was produced by Alan Shacklock, and dented the album charts at number 35. The band toured with Go West, then Marillion in late 1987, and Robert Plant in early 1988. The follow-up album ‘Once Around The World’ was released in March 1988 and showcased their more progressive musical influences, including the seminal title track which came in at just under 15 minutes. The album was recorded at the revered Manor Studios in rural Oxfordshire, produced by Steve Hillage. It produced the singles ‘Kiss Like Judas’ in February 1988, ‘Midnight’ in April 1988, ‘Old Man & The Angel’, and the band toured successfully across the UK, USA and Japan. Eat Me In St Louis was released in 1989 and made quite a mark on the rock scene, with great reviews in Kerrang and Raw. Unfortunately, the singles released from the album didn't make a noted mark on the music charts despite 'Still Too Young To Remember' and 'Underneath Your Pillow' being released twice by Virgin, with new videos each time. Live, the band still proved themselves exceptionally popular, playing sell-out gigs across the UK, USA and Japan, and touring with Jethro Tull.

In 1990, Francis announced he was leaving It Bites. They were in the process of writing their fourth album in an attempt to break the American market but creative pressures became too much, and Francis chose to focus his sights on a solo career. Thank you and Goodnight, a live recording,was the band’s last release which came out in August 1991 . Bob, John and Dick tried to continue the band without Francis, recruiting Innocence Lost singer Lee Knott (who had previously supported It Bites on tour) as lead vocalist, and John Beck taking on the guitarist role, renaming themselves 'Navajo Kiss', and later 'Sister Sarah'. This formation didn't last long, and the band went their separate ways, each doing session work for a number of high profile musicians - John Beck playing keyboards for the Alan Parsons Project and John Wetton (of Asia fame), Dick Nolan playing bass for the Alan Parsons Project and Ray Davies, and recording with Tony Banks on his 1989 'Bankstatement' album, and Bob Dalton playing drums for John Wetton, Chris Norman and Ray Davies, as well as teaching at the Academy of Contemporary Music. John Beck and Dick Nolan also recorded an album under the name of 'Unicorn Jones' featuring David Banks formerly of 'Mummy Calls' who had success with a song featured on the Lost Boys soundtrack. Most recently, John and Bob also came together with Pete Trewavas (Marillion) and John Mitchell (Arena) in the band KINO, whose 2005 album 'Picture' was a huge success on the prog rock scene.

Francis moved to the USA and launched a solo career, recording six solo albums and touring around the world to his base of old and new fans. In August 2003, he held a fan club convention at the Union Chapel in London, and invited John, Dick and Bob along, culminating in them joining him on stage - for the first time in 13 years - to play acoustic versions of 'Hunting The Whale' and 'Still Too Young To Remember' to a highly receptive audience. The following months saw the band get together in Cumbria to write some new songs, and run through old ones. However, with Francis having educational and family commitments in New York, it proved to be difficult to keep the momentum up after he returned to the US. After a year of no further action but continued interest from the fans, John and Bob approached Kino's singer and guitarist John Mitchell (a huge It Bites fan since his teenage years) and proposed reforming the band with him taking on Francis' role.

Now, a few months later, a UK tour has been announced for December, with a warm-up gig in Holland at the end of November, and several new songs composed and ready to be recorded by the band early next year. It Bites are back. Since this was written tons has happened! The band toured successfully in 2006 releasing a live album. In 2008 Dick was replaced with Lee and in September 2008 the new album 'The Tall Ships' was finally released. (Sursa)

It Bites new album - Map of the past

Following on from the highly-acclaimed Tall Ships, It Bites return with their first concept album in a career that spans 25 years.

Inspired by the discovery of an old family photograph, Map of the Past is a highly personal journey that explores love, passion, jealousy, anger, remorse and loss through the eyes of a previous generation against the backdrop of Britain as it enters a new century and one of the most defining periods of its history.
Written by John Mitchell and John Beck over the course of 2011, it was recorded at Outhouse Studios in Reading and features Bob Dalton on drums and Lee Pomeroy on bass.

Map of the Past is released on 26 March 2012.

Night of the Prog Festival VII

The 7th edition is quite challenging, due to the fact that the 2011 Line Up was so strong and hard to top. Therefore it took quite a time to set up a musically wide range and good Line Up for 2012. It takes place on July 7th and 8th 2012.

With Frequency Drift, Enochian Theory, Hasse Fröberg & The Musical Companion, Airbag, Lazuli, Sylvan, Haken, The Flower Kings, Arena, Spock´s Beard, Steve Hackett, Saga and Katatonia all Bands are confirmed.

It took this festival only a few editions to raise to one of the leading progressive rock festivals in Europe - or probably even the world. Next to the music and bands that have taken part at the various festival editions, the main reason for the success is simply the location! The UNESCO world heritage Loreley (GERMANY) is one of the most outstanding Open Air Amphitheaters in Europe. High above the river Rhine,the visitors are overwhelmed by the beautiful view of the surrounding area. By this outstanding ambiente we continue to establish the festival as the "Mekka of Progressive Rock". The highlights of the past 6 years have been for sure the appearances of Dream Theater, Eloy, Fish, ASIA, Jethro Tull, Roger Hodgson, Steve Hackett, Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze, Marillion - to name a few.

The tradition to supply a stage for young and emergent bands is one of our major tasks.To give them the chance to play in front of thousands of people will definitely help to create a career. (Sursa)

Steve Hackett Interview – Golden Tulip, Zoetermeer (NL) on November 26, 2011

It’s not ‘every day’ you get a chance to speak face to face with one of the most accomplished guitarists in the world and especially in the genre of progressive rock. Playing live in the Netherlands for the third time in less than two years, Steve Hackett is still on top of his game. Steve remarried recently (with Jo Lehmann, on June 4, 2011) and released another great studio-album (Beyond The Shrouded Horizon) as well as a dvd (Fire and Ice), shot at London’s Shepherd’s Bush. Since I had the pleasure to talk to Steve about his last album not too long ago, I thought it would be interesting to focus on the live performances with the different line ups through Steve’s long career. In the lobby of the Golden Tulip Hotel I met Steve and Jo. They were looking good and happy together and the amicable guitarist was kind enough to answer as many questions he could handle in the limited time available, because my colleagues of “Progwereld” were next in line.

Menno: Steve , you have been performing live probably for over 40 years now, with Genesis, your electric band, acoustic shows as well as solo performances. How important is the evolution in technology for your live performances?

Steve: I think being on stage is still the same experience. Technology was always changing, even in the nineteen seventies. Once the e-bow had been developed, sustain was no longer chasing a remote dream: it was a reality and it was independent of volume. These days I have Fernandez guitars with sustainer-pick up and on the technical side that makes a tremendous difference. The sound is not driven by volume, it’s easier to control. It’s the kind of sound I always wanted to make in my head: sustain, vibrato and a whole bunch of other things. Everything under control so it meant you could redefine what the guitar was supposed to do. That was in the back of my mind. The guitar was a percussion instrument in the nineteen fifties: you hit it (makes a noise close to the guitar sound of that era) and it was all over as soon as you hit it and you relied on repeat echo to continue the sound. Somewhere between Duane Eddy and The Shadows was the sound every guitarist made. It might seem very obvious now, but at the time I found it both exciting and frustrating. Gradually the guitar sound got wilder throughout the sixties. People had sustain, but it was pretty much hit and miss, but now it’s possible to create that sound in so many ways. When I’m in the studio I use the computer to simulate the sound of a Marshall being overdriven, I use my pedals, I use everything there in the virtual world which sounds the same, but it’s more controllable. Although we have a greater degree of accuracy live, I still depend on the old technology: I have not succumbed to the in-ear experience because I know that listening to my guitar through in-ears will sound horrible. I need to feel it making a big noise. So I’m kind of halfway between the two: somebody who’s got one foot in the old world and one foot in the new…

Menno: Would you say it’s easier to reproduce live what you create in the studio than 30+ years ago?

Steve: Yes it’s easier, definitely!

Menno: I’d like you to share your memories with us of the different bands you played with in your career. The line-up of your first live band (in the seventies) consisted of your brother John Hackett (flute), Nick Magnus (keyboards), John Shearer (drums, Iron Butterfly), Dik Cadbury (bass, Decameron) and Pete Hicks (vocals).

Steve: In the first band for me there was tremendous camaraderie, esprit de corps and it was wonderful to be able to play to enthusiastic audiences. But I feel, at that time, whatever the plusses were of that band, audiences at that time had an idea I should be working with Peter Gabriel or Phil Collins. It took a long time to establish the idea that I was a separate entity. The work that we did, Spectral Mornings and Defector, in a way I have this kind of affection for it, because when I did Spectral Mornings for instance, it’s not so much there was a style as much as a standard of ideas. I think those ideas worked very well and I’m still very proud of them and I still think of some of the songs “oh did I manage to write that? Yeah, that was good wasn’t it!” The input of the people involved was tremendous. At the time I always used to write for the capabilities of the people who were present. Dik Cadbury was trained as a countertenor, so he was a classically trained singer and was involved very much in the arrangement of the vocal harmonies. You know, I wanted this sound of vocal harmonies that had nothing to do with Genesis and had much more to do with the harmony-bands I’ve grown up with and loved. I felt that shared vocal capacity and vocal responsibility was something that would allow us to develop in a different way and it would be less dependent on a lead singer syndrome. I’ve worked with two great singers, Pete and Phil, both very strong personalities, but it wasn’t the only way of doing things, so ultimately we developed in a different strand, a different way, a different strata. John Shearer was a showman. He had this big silver drum-kit and he was very confident live: he knew he could do it, the audiences loved him and it seemed to me he was doing the right things with each song, so I was very pleased with that. Nick was extraordinary. He was and is still a friend and I spend time with him still and work on projects of his. I think he ‘s very clever, but he’s got a different way. However there’s still a kind of kinship with him, he’s part of the extent family. John of course, my brother: we grew up playing together, not always with instruments. He was developing into this phenomenal flute player and doubling on guitar and bass pedals. At the time in the band thy used to make jokes and call him ‘teen idol’ because the girls loved him. In fact both women and men were always falling in love with John. It was fantastic to be able to work with him and develop those ideas. These days I sometimes work on things of his and sometimes he works on things of mine. Pete Hicks as the singer; in a way I thought, when I heard the demo tapes of his voice, he had this kind of quality to his voice almost a bit like Elton John. It didn’t sound generic, he had his own voice, a very beautiful ballad voice. The combination of all those characters created the band I absolutely adored working with and I have a lot of happy memories with those people.

Menno: than in the eighties the line up with Nick Magnus, Chas Cronk (Strawbs), Ian Mosley (Marillion) and brother John?

Steve: Yes some of them continued working with me like Nick and John, but I started working with Chas and Ian, basically for economic reasons, because it wasn’t feasible to keep on paying people wages the whole year round. I had to raid it in, so it featured guys like Chas who was with The Strawbs and is now working with The Strawbs again these days, a very nice guy. Then Ian of course, a very dynamic drummer, very fast. We’re all friends. We sometimes spend time with the Marillion guys. I guess the whole ‘progressive framework’ is pretty much like a family these days where we all work with each other a little bit and everybody knows everybody.

Menno: Then we have the nineties with Julian Colbeck, currently the CEO of Keyfax NewMedia, Doug Sinclair and Hugo Degenhardt (Bootleg Beatles)?

Steve: Yes Julian was a very gifted player and I did a lot of things together with Julian. Now Doug Sinclair and Hugo Degenhardt: they were very interesting. I worked with them as a four piece rather than the five piece or the six piece I have now. Doug and Hugo were a phenomenal rhythm section together. At some point Doug decided to spend more time with his family and he moved out of the music and went on to do other things, but I assure you it was a great loss to music, because he was a fabulous player. I think he had family pressures that made him make that move. Hugo, who is playing with the Beatles, or rather the Bootleg version, is some character. When I first started working with him he was very much a young player, very fiery. We were having these drum auditions and from the very first moment that he attacked the kit I knew he was the guy: an absolute killer! Such strength! One day he went swimming and got a problem with his shoulder, it appeared to be dislocated and it kept popping out so eventually he had to have an operation to have it stitched. It was terrible to see him going through that pain. I remember doing a gig a day after he dislocated his shoulder and he had his arm strapped up and we had another drummer who learned the stuff just overnight but he was playing with just one arm and even with that one arm he was still an extraordinary player! Yes, I loved Hugo, I loved all of the guys.

Menno: Then the present day, the band with Roger King, Nick Beggs, Gary O’Toole, Rob Townsend and Amanda Lehmann?

Steve: The line up now it’s all the guys that you see. Nick Beggs is not with the band at the moment, although he was with everybody for quite a while, but he’s working with Steven Wilson and also with a few other acts. He’s more like a freelance player, working with other people almost like a mercenary. Although I surely don’t think of him as an mercenary person! He was committed to do these shows with Steven Wilson, who is a friend of mine as well. You know I’ve worked with Steven, don’t you? (Menno nods to confirm). So basically we are all working together but on bass we now have a very talented guy called Phil Mulford, talented in a different way of course. Sometimes I work with him, sometimes with another guy named Lee Pomeroy who works with It Bites and Take That. All these people are very talented in their own right.

Menno: Are the goals for you as a musician different from the other decades?

Steve: I think playing live has always been the “raison d’être”. I came to a conclusion the other day: I was thinking there are two ways of leading your career. It seems to me you can either decide to do a really big tour once every ten years if you really keep yourself apart, up here (points above his head – MvBF) or you can be playing practically every other night of the week, but it means that you’re doing what you’re designed to do. A bit like an athlete who is trained to run or jump. For me it’s its own currency: it repays me, it feeds me, it keeps me – so far, touch wood!- healthy, it keeps me young, it keeps me fresh and it keeps me working with musical styles of the world. And (looking to Jo nodding her head to confirm) it keeps us travelling, which is something engaging both of us. We love to travel.

Menno: I don’t assume you have the opportunity to explore the environment every day of a tour haven’t you?

Jo: No, but we try to do so whenever we can and when we have an opportunity, it is often those newly discovered territories that inspire to write new music or come up with ideas for new lyrics. This time around we didn’t have time to see The Hague but a few years back we did go there.

Steve: Oh yes we were in “Den Haag” a few years ago in 2009 when I played with a Hungarian band Djabe (Jazz-ensemble, MvBF). We did a couple of shows, some jazz stuff, some fusion stuff. You know I also like to work with fusion people, with jazz people who let the rockers into their world and that seems to impinge on the world music scene as well, where people are open to each other. In the world of jazz you might find a John McLaughlin, but you also might find someone like Malik Mansurov, someone we know. A fabulous tar player from Azerbaijan. The tar is a tiny instrument resembling the sitar a bit.

Jo: Actually I think this music isn’t pure jazz, but rather “world-fusion”.

Steve: You’re right, it’s like folk music in a way. Everything is with embellishments , very fast, but romantic as well.

Jo: There’s some Eastern quality about it too, music from the ancient world.

Steve: Yes, it’s from the Mongolian steppes, from a land where 50% of the people are nomadic, still! Although we have yet to visit Azerbaijan, we have met with, played live with him and it was so damned good! I can’t tell you, but I think I’m just as enthusiastic about the tar as George Harrison was about the sitar! It’s wonderful, it’s gorgeous stuff…

Menno: Are there countries you’d like to go next?

Steve: Oh, there are many countries we didn’t go to so far, but indeed we visited many places already.

Jo: We’d love to go to Australia and New Zealand. They often ask , but we haven’t been able to go there yet.

Steve: Not yet, but I’m sure it will happen at some point. We went to Malaysia which was… extraordinary. We were in Japan and Jo visited those countries with me these last years. The nice thing is in Japan most people we spoke with were able to speak English and that has changed a lot -for the better- compared with some twenty years ago.

Jo: on both tours we had a day off to explore the country and that was lovely.

Steve: Yeah, that’s what you strive for: a day off on each tour. It gives you a chance to connect with people when you’re working. It’s not as if you’re able to live in these various places, but you stay in touch with people and that’s another way of visiting places: the exchange of cultures through music. Luckily musicians are very open to how they influence people I think. For instance long before I visited Spain I was listening to the music of Segovia, the man rather than the place…. the flamenco players… so I was visiting Spain in my dreams long before I actually went there and you really can’t visit the home of the guitar often enough. It’s a huge world but our suitcases are permanently packed, ready to go: a bit like “have guitar, will travel”. That’s how it works. We haven’t visited China yet, but maybe, hopefully, there’ll be an offer at some point. These are expensive trips so you have to make an economic decision whether such a trip is possible or not. We have a tour manager, Brian Coles, and between the two of us and Brian we make these kinds of decisions. We don’t have a manager as such, although Brian is more than just a tour manager: he ‘s an agent as well. He takes care of the whole touring side of things, he looks after everybody, stays in contact with all the venues and so on.

Menno: Basically that aspect of your career didn’t change that much?

Steve: I guess not. For live work we have a manager, but for the recordings it’s me, Jo and of course Roger King. We make all the decisions on that side as a ‘musical collective’. We kick the ball around and what we find increasingly is that whenever we try and work with somebody who is a manager : they have their own priorities and although they the ability to make all the right moves in the business, it depends on who you are prioritizing. What tends to happen with managers is that they prioritize one act. Brian Epstein: The Beatles, Tony Smith: Genesis… it seems to work best one on one. But even then, when the band starts to move in different directions, it’s unusual to find somebody who is able to look after everybody equally.

Menno: How do you select your musicians and your crew?

Steve: Well, it’s the context that I’ve made over time and there is some flexibility there. If I suddenly would find these guys couldn’t make it, we’d have to go casting the net again, you know, go fishing for people. I do a fair amount of this myself these days because I don’t trust managers anymore. You know the word ‘inertia’ ? Yes? Alright: you know what happens, is when I rely on a professional, nothing happens and I need to be able to move quickly, give people work where I’m involved with so I like to work with friends. I like to work with people who are gifted and committed and show a kind of friendship, fellowship and camaraderie: it’s all very much part of it…. a certain sense of humor…. all of those things.

Menno: Last time you told me that, in a way, you are a bit jealous of your audiences because they see and hear the complete band with lights and all, and you are on stage hearing mainly your guitar, your voice and just a bit of the band… So, what in it for you?

Steve: Well, for instance last night we were in Verviers and they had a particularly nice light show on stage and I was seeing these lightings being set up and I was aware that on stage I’m hearing the sound and I get some balance but I don’t get the full impact of the show, when the sound is beautiful, the music is beautiful and it looks as it’s supposed to, so all of the magic. When you’re on stage you’re involved in it to such an extent that your part of the ‘magic machine’. Indeed I think that up front in the audience is a good position to be: you don’t have any of the responsibility of the show and you’re taking all of the spirit of it. Indeed I’d often would want to be in the audience, up front, hearing it when it’s going right, but you know, you can’t have everything. What I get out of it? it’s being a wrestler: it’s the challenge to sometimes be able to do the impossible and to be able to surprise myself, allow myself to go off the map, do improvisations. With all improvisations, sometimes I think I’m playing to fast or I’m not playing fast enough, but occasionally I’m really right in the moment and you’re getting glimpses of the perfect musical world and that can be very exciting and to be able to play through the thunder of live performance. It is often thunderously loud! Ever since I saw a band play really loud when I was a kid, I must have been 15 or maybe even sixteen, it seemed to me it was impossible they could control the sound because it was so loud and they were probably not loud at all by comparison to now, but they were in this really big echoing hall and there were no people who’d arrived yet. I guess they were doing the equivalent of a sound check and I thought “it’s the gods of thunder at work”. I wanted to be able to do that. In those days all members of the band were wearing band jackets and ties and all looking pretty much like all bands did in the late fifties and early sixties. The whole scene was a lot more tame!

Menno: Well, now you have Spa water on stage instead of beer or whisky back then!

Steve (laughing): Yes, that’s true, blood on the tracks and Spa water on stage!

Menno: Probably blood on the rooftops too right? The whole live experience: is it still worth it? All the arrangements, the travelling, the stress? Still gives you satisfaction?

Steve: Oh yes, it does! It’s still a wonderful feeling and usually I come off stage feeling adrenalized and buzzing as well as exhausted and purged of all negative feelings, because you’re too tired to be negative. Although, last night when I was trying to get into my hotel room well after midnight and I couldn’t get the door unlocked. It took about half an hour to solve that problem and by that time all my tranquility had gone and I was ready to murder someone (Jo & Steve laughing). So (smiling) I’m not that philanthropic!

Menno: You met the other (former ) members of Genesis when you were introduced to the Hall Of Fame and apparently both of the singers weren’t able to or didn’t want to perform: did you consider to do something instrumental instead, alone or with Mike and Tony? Did it disappoint you that there was no “Genesis” performance?

Steve: Now that’s always the problem whenever a group is involved: Genesis, the ethos. I offered to play with them, I would have loved to play live, but they didn’t want to work live. I could have played a Genesis number on my own and if there would be a next time, I probably will. I think waiting for groups can be a very long and thankless task. As much as I love the guys and all the work we did together, the problem is, after a certain point musicians produce phase cancellation to each other rather than constructive comment.

Menno: You probably don’t see much of each other so did you only do small talk or did you go over serious subjects with the other guys?

Steve: Well I see them occasionally. We were having supper together the night before and I think some honest things were talked about that night. I think it was very nice for me to be able to reconnect with them and also for Jo to meet with them for the first time, because she’d obviously heard a lot about them and grew up listening to their records. Jo said to me she really loved Wind and Wuthering and that was my last album with Genesis.

Jo: Yes, that’s the time I came to know about Genesis.

Steve: After all those years I have the confidence of knowing my contribution to the band wasn’t less than anybody else’s: you know I’ve offered them virtually an album full of material and that turned into a collaboration on four different songs. I had many more musical dreams to fulfill than I could do with the group. So it comes down to the single issue of autonomy. people always ask me why I left and this is it: to be able to function without permission, without committee decisions, without phase cancellations. I think the solo career is the ideal for all artists at some point. If you can work in a group-collective as well: very good, but if you can’t, it wouldn’t surprise me (laughs)!

Menno: tonight’s the last show of this tour: any special surprises like a good lengthy show?

Steve: Well I could go off the map and do some improvisations and give the people something they’d never heard before, but you know, it will be a lengthy concert and we do about half an hour’s worth of new material so that’s totally unknown in the live version anyway. I haven’t been counting but we do six songs of the new album. Another thing is, I enjoy playing more after a few shows whenever we go on tour with a new set list. the first shows I have to work a lot harder to remember everything and once you did a few gigs, it’s all a lot easier.

Menno: After tonight you will have about two months off?

Steve: Well, we have Christmas coming up and I don’t feel we will have time to relax because I know there’ll be a lot going on, there always is. Whenever we’re not on the road we’re even more busy than that we’re on the road because there are a lot of plans, a lot of things to organize. And there’s the internet is making inroads into the world of walking in the woods. I’ll be a special guest on one or perhaps two songs -if I can remember the stuff- with The Musical Box on one show in Switzerland at the end of January. We’ll be touring with this set more in February and start working on some fresh material. I’m not making any announcements but we have a project in mind for the future… so we’ll keep on going! Sursa: http://www.dprp.net/wp/interviews/?page_id=1694